Get Equipped
by MatsuHerO
Summary: Matsu helps Doctor Light's first son through an existential crisis.


In the distance, the sun's light greeted the world. The burning star struggled towards its seat in the heavens above the earth, waking slowly from its cyclical slumber and in turn rousing those creatures on the earth below to a similar state of awakening. But there were two eyes that viewed the sunrise this morning through darkened lenses that never closed, because the owner of those two eyes never slept.

It wasn't the first sunrise Protoman had seen, though the robot (who was the first son of Dr. Thomas Light) understood that it could very well be his last. As was the case with most prototypes, there existed a number of bugs still present in the red android's system and while most of these bugs were minor and, by all accounts, almost endearing (at least, to Protoman's way of thinking) there existed one terminal flaw that felt like it turned him into a ticking time bomb.

"Your teleporter is malfunctioning. You haven't got long, I'm afraid."

Dr. Light's words played over and over in his robotic brain, yet on some level, Protoman still couldn't comprehend how this was possible. Thomas Light was the world's preeminent expert on robotics. He and his ex-partner, Dr. Albert Wily, started a revolution the likes of which altered the course of world history. In creating fully functional humanoid robots, together Light and Wily had saved countless human lives. Why risk the loss of human lives due to cave-ins when you could send mining robots instead? Why expose men and women to potentially unsafe doses of radiation when machines could now operate the world's power plants?

Yes, a revolution. Although Wily later proved to be a liability in the form of a megalomaniacal would-be dictator, the positive changes that the creation of those fantastic mechanical men made to the world was undeniable. And Protoman had been the very first. Perhaps he was not as well-known, as beloved, or as honored as his younger brother Rock (or Mega Man, as he was better known) but he would always be the first. Ground zero for the robot revolution.

"And now I'm going to die," Protoman said, out into the wind that whipped around the mountain top upon which he stood, taking in the sight before him.

"Not if I have anything to say about it."

A voice boomed from behind Protoman, causing him to reflexively whip around and ready the plasma cannon in his arm. He was usually so aware of his surroundings since his systems automatically scanned them but somehow, in some way, this potential assailant was able to sneak up behind him. Once he saw that the voice belonged to none other than the Herculean Adonis known as Matsu Her-O, all questions were answered for him.

Protoman lowered his arm cannon and spoke to the man who would be Handsome Man were he a Robot Master. "I appreciate the gesture," he said as he smirked sardonically, "but even Father wasn't sure he could help me."

"Dr. Light may be an innovator in his field," said Matsu Her-O, the sunlight falling favorably upon his chiseled features, "But I'm an expert. I can... hold on."

Suddenly, Matsu vaulted into the air, breaking both the law of gravity and the sound barrier as he sped towards a spot in the distant sun-streaked sky. At first, Protoman was unsure of what that spot could be, but as his ocular circuits compensated for the distance, he could make out Matsu Her-O punching his way into the dome of what appeared to be Dr. Wily's flying escape saucer. It only took a few punches for Matsu to gain access, and though Protoman couldn't hear them, he could tell from Wily's contorted expression that he was screaming in terror. Matsu himself bellowed something in reply to Wily's terrified cries, perhaps along the lines of, "Enjoy your blind date with death," from what little Protoman could make out. After saying his peace, the magnificent titan of a man gripped Wily by the lapels of his lab coat, lifted the insane old scientist out of the saucer, and, with the cry of "Matsu He-Throw!" launched Wily on an unstoppable trajectory towards the rising sun.

As suddenly as he had left, Matsu Her-O was back. "Now," he said, "as I was saying, what Dr. Light doesn't understand is that some mistakes are indeed mistakes and some mistakes are by design, because they aren't mistakes at all."

Protoman's mouth gaped open in disbelief. "Did you just kill Dr. Wily?"

"He'll be back," said Matsu with a shrug. "Probably. He always comes back."

"We usually don't throw him into the sun," replied Protoman.

"Didn't he have a sun robot? He'll be fine. He's Dr. Wily. He'll be back," insisted Matsu.

Protoman still couldn't believe what he had witnessed. "I mean, I don't mind if you did, it's a long time coming, I just..."

Matsu held up a single finger that contained more power than any Robot Master. "Back to what I was saying. You're not a mistake."

Protoman cocked his head to the side, loosening his yellow scarf just enough so that it slapped him in the face every time a gust of wind blew over the mountain top. "I'm afraid I don't–" But before he could finish, Matsu Her-O had already opened the robot's chest cavity and was re-arranging wires and circuits.

After mere seconds, Matsu was ready to add the final touch. "I took the liberty of going back in time and altering Light and Wily's original design. Because of that, you're not broken, you're just missing something." Matsu then pulled from his tunic pocket a glowing orb about the size of a softball. "A little something Darth Vader and Batman designed, with my help." Matsu lovingly placed the sphere into the center of Protoman and closed the chest cavity. "Protoman! Get equipped with the power of Matsu Her-O to become... Matsu Ro-Bo!"

It didn't take long for Protoman to notice a change. His circuits were aflame with immense power. His helmet, which normally covered his whole head but left his face exposed, dissolved atop his now-spiky hair. Though his shaded visor remained, the smirk on his face was alight with the power of a demigod.

It wasn't long before the full transformation came to an end, and Matsu Ro-Bo followed Matsu Her-O as he took to the sky.

In the distance, Light's son greeted the world, unaware that he was now out of a job.


End file.
